The majority of gamblers use online gambling sites as a source of entertainment rather than as a way to win money long term according to the results of a ground breaking study released today.
Carried out by the Betting and International gaming Research Units at Nottingham Trent University the study asked set questions of almost 11,000 international online players in 96 countries across the globe including the United Kingdom and across 37 employment sectors.
Asked why they gambled online most of them replied that they did so ‘to relax’ ‘for the entertainment’ or to ‘relieve boredom’. These findings will come as a major boost to online gaming sites who now realise they have new scope for marketing to the public.
The results of this, the largest and most comprehensive study of online gambling worldwide were released at the International Casino Exhibition in London today to the eagerly awaiting gambling public and companies within the industry. The project was carried to out to source information and views for the online regulators eCOGRA.
More good news came for online gambling providers with the finding that the main attractions for punters are ‘convenience and accessibility’ as well as ‘fun and excitement’.
Most of the players questioned for the survey said ‘losing’ and negative ‘financial implications’ were the worst aspects of playing online as might be expected however the scale of losses is relatively low compared with other types of gambling. The majority of players said they were ‘up’ or ‘down’ within the range plus or minus £130. That comes to just £32.50 per week and seems to back up the claim that most players get involved for the entertainment side of things.
Players feel theres a need for improvement across a wide range of areas from self-regulation to the uniformity of code of conduct but in general are satisfied that online gaming is worthwhile and rewarding.
In terms of where online gambling is played the research shows that 89.7 % takes place at home and mainly in the evening when people return from work. However 10 percent of the 4,517 women questioned say they preferred logging on and playing in the workplace.
The typical wager is between £15-30 a session in casino games and poker players said they typically played with 2-10% of their bankroll at any one time.
Casino providers will especially find the results of the study useful. For example the findings show that the most important single motivator for playing at a particular casino site is its bonuses (75%), followed by game variety (62%), deposit method and reputation (both 56%) and then promptness of payouts (54%).
Reacting to the surprising but highly useful results Andrew Beveridge, CEO of eCOGRA said "These findings are a salutary reminder about the vast majority of players who enjoy this form of entertainment responsibly. Our job is to signpost players towards those operators who are meeting the majority's expectations regarding fair play, responsible operator conduct and provisions to address problem gambling. We are encouraged by much of the feedback, but also recognise that we still have some way to go."
As a result of the survey the following profiles for poker and casino games players were formed :
The average online poker player is likely to:
- Be male (73.8%)
- Be aged 26-35 (26.9%)
- Play 2-3 times per week (26.8%)
- Have visited more than 6 poker sites in the preceding three months (25%)
- Have played for 2-3 years (23.6%)
- Play for between 1-2 hours per session (33.3%)
- Play one (24.1%) or two (24%) tables at a time
- Play both cash games and tournaments (34%)
- Play at big-blind (minimum stake) levels of 25p to £1.00 (61.2%)
- Play with 6-10% of their bankroll at a table at any one time (23%)
The average online casino player is likely to:
- Be female (54.8%)
- Be aged 46-55 (29.5%)
- Play 2-3 times per week (37%)
- Have visited more than 6 casinos in the preceding three months (25%)
- Have played for 2-3 years (22.4%)
- Play for between 1-2 hours
